Earlier this year, I found out that one of my friends has become a vegan. It was pretty shocking seeing as he was the type of guy who would eat anything, including army rations, which is reputed for being terrible, and has even killed a guy recently (a kid on some school cadet camp ate some army rations containing peanuts, and he died from an allergic reaction). While studying for my psych exam, I was wondering how far does veganism go?
One of the techniques for psychological research was called ablation studies, and involved cutting out parts of the brain and seeing how that affected animals. Flourens cut out various parts of the brain, and found out various things about the areas of the brain. Obviously, it's not something that psychology students get to do now, and it's not something you can do on human test subjects, but it did lead to some important discoveries.
Considering the fact that some vegans won't wear leather shoes because of an animal died to get that leather, would it be right to use information obtained through animal experimentation? How is it possible to avoid it? Some of the medicines we use now have been tested on animals, to see whether or not it has the desired effect, or causes any side-effects.
Also, seeing as vegans don't eat eggs even though the chicken doesn't have to die to lay the eggs, does that mean diabetic vegans won't use insulin produced from pigs (I can't remember what animal it was, and it's 6AM, so I'm too lazy to even do a Google search, but I recall watching something about how they can get pigs to generate insulin that can be used by diabetics - although I'm not sure how they get it out)?
I think in the past, dogs were used to set off mines in the ground so that soldiers could have "safe" passage through enemy territory, but does that mean vegans shouldn't walk there because the safety was obtained through the cruel use of animals?
Before you start flaming me, I respect my vegan friends. While I don't completely agree with their rationale (hence my not being vegan), I understand their reasons, and admire their ability to not eat all of the yummy looking things available to them. I know that I shouldn't, but part of me groups vegans with those crazy people that protest in front of KFC saying that they have genetically mutated chickens with a hundred wings and no heads, or something strange like that.
Oh, I should probably mention that I can't receive SMSes at the moment, nor send them. My phone has been like that for the past few days. So if you've sent me something, chances are, I didn't see it. Please email me instead. Sorry! Trying to get it fixed. T_T
One of the techniques for psychological research was called ablation studies, and involved cutting out parts of the brain and seeing how that affected animals. Flourens cut out various parts of the brain, and found out various things about the areas of the brain. Obviously, it's not something that psychology students get to do now, and it's not something you can do on human test subjects, but it did lead to some important discoveries.
Considering the fact that some vegans won't wear leather shoes because of an animal died to get that leather, would it be right to use information obtained through animal experimentation? How is it possible to avoid it? Some of the medicines we use now have been tested on animals, to see whether or not it has the desired effect, or causes any side-effects.
Also, seeing as vegans don't eat eggs even though the chicken doesn't have to die to lay the eggs, does that mean diabetic vegans won't use insulin produced from pigs (I can't remember what animal it was, and it's 6AM, so I'm too lazy to even do a Google search, but I recall watching something about how they can get pigs to generate insulin that can be used by diabetics - although I'm not sure how they get it out)?
I think in the past, dogs were used to set off mines in the ground so that soldiers could have "safe" passage through enemy territory, but does that mean vegans shouldn't walk there because the safety was obtained through the cruel use of animals?
Before you start flaming me, I respect my vegan friends. While I don't completely agree with their rationale (hence my not being vegan), I understand their reasons, and admire their ability to not eat all of the yummy looking things available to them. I know that I shouldn't, but part of me groups vegans with those crazy people that protest in front of KFC saying that they have genetically mutated chickens with a hundred wings and no heads, or something strange like that.
Oh, I should probably mention that I can't receive SMSes at the moment, nor send them. My phone has been like that for the past few days. So if you've sent me something, chances are, I didn't see it. Please email me instead. Sorry! Trying to get it fixed. T_T
4 comments:
Isn't it funny that the most important psychology/psychiatry/neuroscience discoveries, the ones that they always teach in the classes, the ones that taught us the most important things, were always the most unethical experiments, that they hold up as examples of bad ethics?
Good point about the vegans :)
They used to just grind up loads of pig pancreases to extract the insulin - then someone worked out how to identify the gene that codes for the synthesis of insulin in those cells and insert it into genetically engineered bacteria, so you can just grow all the insulin you like in a tank full of bacteria.
I wonder if it's still non vegan, since it comes from bacteria?
I wonder how low down veganism goes? Like, will hardcore vegans reject bread, or alcohol or cheese, because they're made with yeast and bacteria?
I can't believe you posted a blog here and not on Windows Live. How was I supposed to find it?
Unethical Psychology experiments are hilarious. Remember that one that made that little kid terrified of white objects?
And yes, some vegans avoid cheese, just like they'll avoid milk. Not sure about yeast, though.
-GP
Oh wow, I thought I posted it there, but I guess it didn't show up and I didn't bother to check. I fail. >_<
If it's for economical reasons, why do they go out of their way not to eat meat? My manager at work said that when he tried being vegetarian, he found it was lot more expensive, but then again, he said he bought a lot of "vegetarian meat".
Hehehe, this wasn't meant to be rantworthy, just me pondering how extreme veganism can get. :)
But not eating meat can cause problems, too, right? In terms of animals reproducing like crazy, and us not killing them off, then letting them destroy the ecosystem. =/
Then again, survival of the fittest...
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